Belgium, Israel, and the US clash over a court case concerning circumcision practices

Brussels – A legal case that has turned into a battleground for political attacks and confrontation between Belgium, Israel, and the United States of America. The casus belli is the Belgian judiciary’s desire to shed light on cases of child circumcision. This has triggered a violent reaction from Tel Aviv and Washington, complete with accusations of anti-Semitism levelled at the European country, and the consequent response from Brussels, which has rejected attempts at interference.

As reported by the Belga news agency, the Antwerp Public Prosecutor’s Office announced today (6 May) that it intends to refer two mohels—that is, individuals responsible for performing circumcisions—to the criminal court for alleged illegal practices, explaining that the offences in question have been classified as “premeditated intentional bodily harm against minors and the unauthorised practice of medicine.” One of the two is a US citizen, and the case dates back to May 2025 when, during a judicial investigation, the police carried out three searches, two in the city’s Jewish quarter and one in the Groen Kwartier district. The Public Prosecutor’s Office suspected that medical procedures might have been carried out by individuals without recognised medical training. “The investigation focuses on medical procedures carried out by people who have not received medical training. In other words: the circumcisions would not have been performed by or with a doctor,” the prosecutors had clarified at the time.

In May last year, no arrests had been made, but the Public Prosecutor’s Office now believes there is sufficient evidence to ask the Indictment Division to rule on whether the two suspects should be referred to the criminal court. The men are currently being granted access to the case file, and the Indictment Division will examine the case in camera on 18 June and decide whether the defendants should stand trial. But the case goes beyond the judicial and news spheres, becoming a political issue and a matter of Belgium’s relations not only with Israel but also with the United States of America.

The Israeli Foreign Minister, Gideon Sa’ar, posted on his social media channels that “with this measure, Belgium, along with Ireland, joins a short and shameful list of countries that resort to criminal law to prosecute Jews who practise Judaism.” He then described the accusation as “an indelible stain on Belgian society” and called on the Belgian government “to act immediately and find a solution.” Echoing his sentiments, the US Ambassador to Belgium, Bill White, commented on the incident on X, describing the legal proceedings as “a shameful stain” on the country. Not only that: “The persecution of these religious figures (mohels), one of whom is American, is WRONG and will not be tolerated,” he added, emphasising that “Belgium will now be viewed as anti-Semitic by the world.” The ambassador insisted that “the Trump administration condemns this legal action and also condemns the Belgian government’s political inaction in finding a solution with the wonderful Jewish communities here in Belgium.” White then called on the De Wever government to find “an immediate solution” to the situation. “For the sake of Belgium’s reputation in the world, I hope that Belgium acts immediately,” he concluded.

Belgium’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Maxime Prévot, has responded relentlessly to the accusations from Tel Aviv and Washington. “I urge you to exercise greater restraint and to consider your role in its proper context” because “it is not appropriate to publicly criticise a country and tarnish its image simply because one disagrees with a judicial proceeding,” wrote on its social media channels, rejecting the criticisms levelled by White. “Would you find it acceptable if our ambassador in Washington were to do the same?” he added. Prévot pointed out that the Belgian judiciary is “independent and makes decisions free from any political influence.” He also noted that the proceedings in question had been initiated by representatives of the Jewish community themselves. “To describe this as a country’s desire to undermine the religious freedom of Jews is defamatory,” he emphasised. Earlier, the Deputy Prime Minister had replied to Sa’ar, reminding him both that “in Belgium, the judiciary is independent and makes its decisions—whether one agrees with them or not—free from any political influence” and “that the proceedings in question were initiated by representatives of the Jewish community themselves.” Finally: “Since you yourself have recently urged against conducting diplomacy via Twitter, I suggest we discuss all these matters during a meeting in Israel at a time that suits you best, in order to put an end to any misunderstanding.”

From the European Parliament, Elio Di Rupo, Prime Minister of Belgium from 2011 to 2014 and now an MEP, replied harshly to White: “If an ambassador had made such statements during my time as Belgian Prime Minister, I would have declared him persona non grata. If you don’t like my country, go back to Mar-a-Lago. There’s certainly no shortage of flights between Belgium and Florida. If you stay, I ask you to respect us and the laws in force in our country,” he thundered.

Last year, the investigation had already provoked strong reactions from Jewish organisations in Belgium and abroad. The European Jewish Association (EJA) had described the police operations as “yet another crossing of a red line to intimidate Jewish religious leaders in Belgium.” The Belgian Forum of Jewish Organisations (Forum der Joodse Organisaties – FJO) and the Coordinating Committee of Jewish Organisations in Belgium (Le Comité de Coordination des Organisations Juives de Belgique – CCOJB) also criticised the searches, describing them as a “serious violation of religious freedom.”